Worcester School Committee 2-5-2026

001Just welcome everybody to the Wister School >> recording in progress. >> Worester school committee meeting and uh if you can please stand for the pledge of allegiance and the national to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Oh, say can you see by the dawn early light so proudly we held at the twilight last gleaming whose bright stripes and bright stars through the barless or the ramparts We wash. We're so gallently streaming and the rock is red. The bombs bursting in air gave proof through the night that our flag was still there. Oh, say does that star spangle man way for the land of the free and the home of the brave. Roll call. >>

002Member Alvarez, >> present. Member Bianceria >> here. >> Member Benenda >> here. >> Member Guardiola >> here. >> Member Johnson >> here. >> Member Mailman >> here. >> Vice Chair Mcculla >> here. >> Member Roy >> here. >> Mayor Penny >> here. Okay, we are on M. Uh student advisory committee items review and audit nurse school nurse staffing levels refer the administration. Does anybody want to talk about that or want you student advisor? Why don't you introduce yourselves anyways? What school you're from? Your name. >> Oh, all right. Um my name is Ivon Roberts and I'm a senior from Branco High School. Um, I just wanted to shed some light on the staffing of school nurses in our school district. Um, so a problem, a consistent problem that I've kind of been seeing is that

003when students are in need of the nurse, they'll go and it results in them being sent back to class. And it's because the nurses are underst staffed and um every they can't just get to everybody on like allin-one. They need um more support and that's just kind of why I found I'm so sorry. >> That's okay. Good job. >> Thank you. Like to introduce yourself and the school you're from? >> Hi, my name is Inira Bonu. I'm from North and I'm a junior. >> Okay. Welcome. Welcome both of you. So, we're going to refer that to the administration. All those in favor? Opposed? We have the consent agenda. Um, member McCulla. Thank you through the chair. I have an item on here that's a recognition, the initial filing for a POSI scholar. I found out

004today that there is indeed another Posi scholar at Dardy and we are going to confirm if there are any others and I will submit their name separately as well so we can rec make sure we recognize all Posi scholars. >> Okay. So, as amended, we'll send we'll do a roll call. >> Roll call. >> Member Alvarez. >> Yes. >> Member Banceria. >> Yes. >> Member Bernenda. >> Yes. >> Member Guiola. >> Yes. >> Member Johnson. >> Yes. >> Member Mailman. >> Yes. >> Vice Chair McCulla? >> Yes. >> Member Roy? >> Yes. >> Mayor Petty? >> Yes. Okay. Public comment. Any member of the public may address this committee regarding any items for up to two minutes. Just your name, see your residence, and item number. Hi, good evening. My name is Dena Tedeski. I'm

005a Worester resident and the parent of a Wester public school graduate and current eighth grader. My comments are regarding ROS 6-3. I along with many others are concerned for the decrease in enrollment. The decrease of lowincome students and multilingual learners seems exceptional. So many families in Worcester can't afford to live in Worcester and that's a problem and a shame for many reasons. The wraparound coordinators, family and community engagement office team do an amazing job helping families, but they can't fix the housing crisis. How is our school committee working with either city council or government agencies or other groups to make changes on this? This is an opportunity to do something with your colleagues to make changes like adjusting the 3% copout developers often take instead of creating affordable and inclusionary housing. We know that adjustment

006to the state um of just 1% of the inflation rate has an incredible benefit to schools, especially Worcester. Where's the push to change this? You have parents and community members on your side with the inflation adjustment. Why are we still just seeing this info about with it about it without no act with no action regarding an area of impact noted on slide 21 noted health and wellness? I advocate for the students agenda item SA 6-1 to review and audit school nurse staffing levels. Our children's mental and physical wellness depends on these services and with some's nursing staff this might be the only and safest space for some students to express concerns and receive care and services. Regarding GB4-1- uh 4-117 and GB5-103, the district and the school committee needs to hear really hear our parent

007and caregiver concerns about screen time, biometric data, privacy, and consent. At Tuesday's TLSS meeting, I was disappointed and angered by the lack of regard for concerns uh member Alvarez excluded. Parents are talking about this to you with you and concerns are being swept into a filing cabinet. I echo the comments and share by many others that may happen this evening. Take us seriously. We want what's best for our kids. We want you to take time and give value to these concerns. All of the people care about our children and AI and data metrics and screen time and other tech concerns, not just Worcester public school parents. We are a community growing our future workers, entrepreneurs, leaders, and scholars. And I'm downright angry and dis about the dismissive tone at non at WPS constituents. We all

008care and I strongly urge the district and school committee to look at a compromise and understanding versus disregarding our community members. We are stronger together always. Thank >> Thank you. >> Good evening. Leah Bradley. I'm the CEO for Central Massachusetts Housing Alliance. Um, and I, uh, that's on Six Institute Road here in Worcester. So, I'm actually here to talk about the, um, one of the recognitions for Worcester Technical High School and the administration, uh, school administration for opening the high school for those that were unhoused during the storm and the really cold days ahead of time. So, it's a it was a great uh effort by a lot of the city uh departments and also nonprofits and some volunteers, but really just wanted to take some time to thank the Worcester Technical High School staff

009and the folks that I had interacted with on that weekend. So, we took the Central Mass Housing Alliance took the lead on Friday night and on Monday night to ensure that folks had safe staffing and really just want to highlight a few folks and I know it's not everybody that was involved but just really want to say that you know Drew Weimoth who is the principal and Joselyn who was a woo tech they were there with us overnight a couple of the nights which was really above and beyond. Um, also to the custodial staff and Richard Iconic Conan and Matthew Moors who were on the calls with us, took calls at ungodly hours from me on that weekend when we needed things. Um, and also the uh, basketball team from both Worcester Technical High School

010and Hopedale. So that night we had to open at the um, in the cafeteria and it was at 5:00 and we had to move from the cafeteria over to the gym. And if it wasn't for the basketball students, then we would have had probably moved at 10 o'clock instead of at 8:30. And folks were tired. They were outside all day and they were cold and they were tired. So, huge thank you to them. Also, just to say that the school uh really had was made sure that we had all of our needs met. So, they had a television to watch the Patriots win the AFC Championship that Sunday, which was great. They were very excited. Um just refrigerator space. there was the use of a crate for a dog that one of the clients had

011had in their car. Um, so really just want to make sure that I recognize folks and say thank you to everybody for the community effort. They were patient, flexible, accommodating, and compassionate. So, thank you. My sincerest thank you. >> Thank you. >> What's your name? See your residence and item number. Uh, Ignasio Aril, Worcester, uh, 293 Harrington Way. Um, I'm here in response to item GB6-11 to, uh, be in favor of building an indoor track facility uh, in the new Burn Code High School that's going into place. I currently am or was the site administrator for all the inner city track programs that went on this uh season. And I've chosen to come up and advocate for all 400 plus athletes in the city of Worcester that had to travel to Northbridge in order to

012access a facility. Um, currently as we start to plan, I look at our current situation at Burn Code High School and we're in a facility that was built in 1964 before girls were allowed to play past half court basketball and they were not allowed to run past 800 meters. Our boy our locker room currently has a weight room inside the boys locker room which makes it very uncomfortable and inequitable within our sports teams. uh as we constantly are working with our peers on other coaches from other sports to fight for gym space time, we perennially run up against scheduling conflicts and issues with the limited space we have. Uh in addition, every school in the city has had to start traveling to Northbridge to access facilities. Um, this has put us at a substantial disadvantage

013when competing with neighboring towns. Uh, other towns compete during the week, leaving their weekends to compete at the bigger meets in uh, Boston and at the larger facilities. Our students thus have to choose which of events they will attend as a team or divide their team. Um, I encourage everyone on the committee to come out to one of our athletic events here in the city of Worcester. You will see that track is unique in that we support each other across teams. Just this last weekend, we had South High School high jumpers being cheered on by Tech as their South is clearing a height over them. We have a supportive nature that creates a supportive community. We'd like to have that support from school committee as we start to build the new building and look for

014any funding whatsoever to really produce a facility that is universal to all our athletes, including the 400 students that run track. >> Thank you. Thank you. >> Do we have anybody online or Christie? >> Good evening everybody. My name is Noelia Chafoya and I'm a Wista resident, parent of a kindergartener in our schools. I'm here to speak on two specific items, GB4117 and GB5103. Before addressing these items, I want to acknowledge that several items and petitions related to educ educational technology have already gone to teaching, learning, and student success and are also scheduled for them to go to finance and operations next week. These include one-on-one devices, screen time, education applications, thirdparty services, requests for explicit AI consent, data privacy, and instructional practices. While these topics are all connected, they are distinct components of educational

015technology. I respectfully ask that while these topics are connected that the district and the committee give to each item individual attention so that decisions around devices and application use are both thoughtful, intentional, and student centered. Regarding GB417, I want to thank the administration for providing visibility to recommended guidelines on screen time. I appreciate the work that has gone into this. As these guidelines continue to be developed and evaluated, I ask that the walkthroughs not be treated as standalone data points, I respectfully request that the district solicit direct input from teachers across grade levels to assess both the benefits and the risk for educational technology in our classrooms. Teachers experience this daily and their perspective is of the utmost importance. I also want uh clarification on who defines these recommended guidelines and usage. Are they determined

016by the district or influenced by contractual agreements with thirdparty vendors? In STM Math's application case, I was informed that the 20-minut daily use is contractually required. I have yet to see the contract as it is not viewable online and has not been provided following a request via the clerk's office yet. How do the teachers feel about these requirements? Have you have they been surveyed? And if so, do teachers have and have been given a safe space to provide direct and quantifiable feedback when we measure the benefits on screen time. Are we evaluating engagement, shallow learning, deep learning, etc. I'll close in a second. Okay. Um, but essentially, how much educational technology is appropriate? We already have technology class. Um, is that sufficient enough? Thank you. >> Thank you. Trying to figure out Thank you. Okay.

017You said nobody's on Okay. Where are they? >> My name is Katherine Holmes. I live in Worcester. I'm relieved that these conversations are happening and I appreciate the work of the future technology committee is doing um especially for GB4117. I do respectfully request that GB5103 be held until this future technology committee does have its meeting in March about AI. it seems like it should be given the same care and attention that this uh item has on uh screen time today. And also that other part in GB 5103 about software acquisition and policy and process. It seems to have not been addressed uh thoroughly. So I also would request that that item stay open for that purpose and further discussion. Regarding item GB4117 and discussion that took place at Tuesday's meeting, I was optimistic to hear

018that when our district leaders are going into the classroom, they're witnessing technology use that is very minimal. But from f school year 25 to fiscal year 26, the budget for instructional technology applications increased from 28% to nearly 39% of the entire instructional materials line item, which not does not include the cost of the Chromebooks. For comparison, non-digital instructional materials saw a decrease of 16% in that same time frame. Importantly, I believe that the opinions and daily experiences of teachers and students, as our previous speaker said, are glaringly missing from these conversations, at least as far as has been presented to the public. Could these perspectives be solicited by surveying instructional staff regarding when, why, and how student facing instructional technology is used and what positive and negative impacts they perceive it has on student learning

019and well-being. As for transparency, we know our communications team does an exceptional job with the website. However, when you go to the SDPC website where the 400 student data privacy agreements are housed, it's inaccessible. It's not translated into different languages, it's not categorized, it's not searchable. So, I would just ask that we um apply the same treatment to that portion of the website as we do to the rest uh to increase that transparency and accessibility. And then as well, our director of innovation had an excellent um suggestion at Tuesday's meeting. she suggested pairing down those 400 agreements or 300 that are active and make a really good elementary ecosystem of apps so um so that it's just more streamlined. So I I second her great suggestion. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Okay, we have

020people online. I think we have sir do you want to say >> does your name say your residence item number and I'm a wor I come here and I am so proud of my city and everybody that works for our city I'm a little bit worried I have two college educated um sons and one just recently graduated from UMass Amherst as a um electrical engineer. So he he isn't in the field that he wants right now, but um there is deep concern that he may be replaced by AI because of what he does. So I hope that you consider um our use of AI. Um it takes an extraordinary amount of power. We all know that. So what are we becoming if a natural disaster happens and it wipes out and there's many of them

021just watch the news. What are we gonna do? Are we gonna replace our teachers and educators and future engineers with AI with a robots? So, I I hope you consider what we're doing with AI. I mean, I don't oppose it. Um, our future job opportunities are going to depend on what road we take. I can't imagine what life is going to be like in 20 years. Are we all going to be unemployed because a robot or AI has our jobs? Uh, tradesmen are very much needed. So keep up the work and thank you for listening. >> Thank you. >> Ashen Doyle. >> Good evening. My name is Ashlin Doyle and I live in Worcester. I just wanted to speak in reference to the time on screen policy. I wanted to say that I appreciate the

022detailed description of the one-to-one program and the daily tools used in the classroom. I am a member of the district tech advisory committee and I'm glad to see the things we've discussed in those meetings are integrated into that backup. Um, you know, I've been a parent in this district for three and a half years and I have never before seen a comprehensive description in this way. So the clarity is helpful and I hope there is a plan to share this information with families on parent square. Um one recommendation I would like to suggest to school committee is that the guidance around indoor recess be more explicitly codified into the recess policy itself in the student handbook. Specifically that indoor recess should be structured to prioritize screen-free activities that promote play, social interaction and physical movement.

023I think naming that expectation in policy would provide clarity and consistency across schools. Thank you. >> Thank you. Our next speaker >> go ahead. >> Hello. I'm Nathan Diaz, uh 605 Lincoln Street, Worester, Mass. Um be speaking on GB 611. Um, so I am a track captain and athlete at Berno High School and I just want to speak on the not just disadvantages we are left at as a community like 400 plus ath track athletes without these proper facilities that we do not have at the moment and hopefully soon we'll be able to. um running at these big meets like at New Balance or at Reggie Lewis Center, we are always left at a lower competition rate as the other students because those students have facilities. They have all these other things that go into

024their daily training, not just um not just being like a track outside, but they do have indoor tracks. Um it's a it's a real pain not just for me and for all teammates and other students around that we have to go from Worcester leaving at maybe 6:00 7:00 in the morning to go down to North Bridge to go compete or go all the way down to Boston and those meets we all love we all love to run at we all love to share our time there but it's a pain that when we go not all of us are able to compete at a level compared to all the other students And I feel like that not just this won't just benefit me but all students around in the city because a lot of schools not

025just here in Worcester but around do have to pay to use other facilities on Saturdays. So that could benefit the city the school and the athletes and pretty much I believe that that would be an amazing thing to be in the set in the news high school. Thank you so much. Okay, we have somebody on people on the lineup if you want to come up, please. So, >> hi, I'm Hannah Rhodess. I'm a PE teacher and indoor track coach at Burncoat High School. So, I'm also going to be speaking about GB611. Um, the opportunity to fund a fieldhouse is not something that's just going to affect our student athletes, but it could also affect our students as I see consistently working in the gym. The inadequacies that we are providing or lacking to provide our

026students is massive. It's not uncommon to have over 60 students in the gym for a class period at a time. It's not uncommon to have to attempt to train my athletes um on a singular rusty squat rack on a old shower tile floor. Um we do not have the capabilities to train our athletes at the same rate as our competitors. the indoor track facility, the fieldhouse, the funding to provide this opportunity not only affects the track athletes at Burncoat and the surrounding schools for Worcester, but it also affects our students at Burncoat and all of our students at Worcester as well. So, thank you. >> Thank you. >> Okay, I'll set anybody else in the audience seeing nobody else go online and Keith, >> hey there. This is Keith Lenire's one Germaine Street um Worester

027resident. I wanted to uh first express disappointment about the decision to file the petitions related to consent uh processes around collection of student data and potential use and training of AI algorithms. Um my other comments are regarding GB 5103 and GB4117. Um there was a 2024 Stanford metaanalysis of 119 studies on early literacy technology. The conclusion was pretty stark. Uh at best educational technology produces marginal gains on standardized tests. Many studies show that there's no little positive effect, no effect or even negative effect. At the same time, American schools spent about $30 billion on educational technology in 2024. Um the article mentioned that international assessment data has shown that greater inschool computer use often correlates with lower academic performance while classrooms with limited computer use actually perform better than those with technology. Um so given

028that I have a couple questions. I'm wondering um if the administration can provide a consolidated annual total of all of the instructional technology spending. So spending on devices, software licenses, IT staffing, maintenance and replacement and I get that in per pupil cost. Uh wondering what measurable improvements in reading and math outcomes can be directly attributed to any of these platforms. Has boost improved reading? Has ST math performed uh uh increased performance since their adoption? Um before adopting or renewing uh these technologies, what evidence threshold needs to be demonstrated uh to show that the tools actually produce meaningful academic gains compared to lower tech or teacher-led alternatives? And then when you're renewing these uh technologies, um looking at um you know, what are the the criteria that you're using to validate whether they're successful or not?

029>> Thank you, Keith. You Okay, we have one more person on line. Who's that? Tasha. Tasha. >> Hi. Good. >> Hi. Just your name and say your residence. Do we >> do you unmute yourself or >> Can you hear me? >> They can hear you now. Go ahead. >> Oh, hi. Good afternoon. My name is Natasha. I'm at 43 Oberlin Street in Worcester, Mass. Um I am actually quite glad we're talking about the technology that we're bringing into our kids um schools. However, I've heard us talk about teaching kids how to be safe online. Um we're now talking about how much screen times these kids are allowed to have and the different kind of technology they're allowed to be exposed to. However, I haven't heard any conversation so far around the safety of how our

030kids schools are prepared to handle all this. Um, as I work in big companies, I see employers employing um, agencies to come in to teach their employers where to sit, how to sit. Um, all of the ergonomics of working at a computer and being at a computer for so long. Many people work at home. They have desks that adjust, their chairs adjust. We don't see any of this in our kids' classrooms and more and more time our kids are spending on these computers. So, looking at this from a safety perspective, what's going to happen to them long term? Uh, carpal tunnel syndrome, the kids with humps on their backs and different things. These are things we need to look into to prevent from happening cuz medically this is also going to be affecting them. So,

031as much as we're looking at the technology, this is also part of that that needs to get looked at and spoken about. Thank you. >> Thank you. With that, we'll close this part of the meeting. >> Okay, we're going to go to the report of the superintendent is the fiscal year 27 primary budget estimates and school committee priorities. Motion's approved into file. Mr. Superintendent, >> uh, thank you. as uh Miss Consalvo, our chief finance and operations officer, comes to the table, I'll just set the table by saying um what I think the three key takeaways that you'll hear tonight is while we are experiencing an enrollment uh decrease for next year, what you'll see is it's primarily at the prek level. Um when I used to do this presentation for the last 25 years, I

032would always tell you and remind you that uh preschool enrollment as of October 1, which is when enrollment is captured, is not a good time to capture preschool enrollment. Um as preschool enrollment happens uh throughout uh the course of the year. I want to remind the school committee that this will be the last year of our student opportunity act funding phase in. So uh this is year six of six of uh phase in. you'll see a slide that shows what the total impact S SOA dollars has brought to Worcester. Um, and then finally, I think the uh key takeaway is uh while the inflation factor used in the uh foundation budget is modest, uh you'll see our preliminary cost estimates um exceed that amount and that uh is concerning as we would go into FY

033uh 28 for any structural uh funding deficits. So, now that Miss Conso is settled, I'll let turn the entire presentation over to her. >> Miss Conso, >> good evening. Through the chair, tonight the administration will be presenting >> Can you put that microphone a little bit closer? >> Close. >> Yeah, >> better. >> Good evening. Through the chair. Tonight, the administration will be presenting the prelim preliminary budget estimates for fiscal year 2027. Our goal is to provide a clear roadmap of anticipated revenue from the governor's budget that was released last Wednesday along with key drivers shaping the financial landscape and the initial cost projections. The House and the Senate will release their budget versions in the coming months. And while there is a potential for change, this presentation serves as a foundation for upcoming planning

034sessions as we align our fiscal resources for student success. Slide, please. By aligning funding with the district's strategic plan, we ensure our resources are strategically invested in the six target areas, including providing equitable resources, safe and welcoming learning spaces, ensuring highquality educators for our students, positive relations with caregivers through community engagement. Slide, please. As we begin our FY27 budget planning process, recommendations will also align with the superintendent's goals that improve student achievement, enhance collaborative teaching with our educators, supporting the district's grow our own pipeline, and the school boundary and quadrant realignment an analysis. Using both the strategic plan and the superintendent's goals as a starting point for discussion, the administration will be providing multiple forums for feedback from our community stakeholders, educators, parents, and students. We want to ensure that fiscal decisions translate directly into

035measurable success for our students and the broader community. Slide, please. The FY27 budget has five major themes defining the budget process. We are navigating a slight enrollment decrease and a moderate inflation rate. Importantly, this is the final year of the six-year student opportunity act or S SOA phasin. As with each budget, there are changes to reflect new staffing in certain areas, emerging student and school needs, and adjustments based on enrollment shifts. We also continue our shift toward an equity-based budget process to close opportunity gaps. Slide, please. Student enrollment is a major factor as it relates to the state's foundation budget calculation. Looking at our enrollment numbers, the overall enrollment decreased by 101 students or about 41%. While we saw a slight growth in the middle and high school populations, there was a more noticeable decrease

036at the preschool and elementary levels. At grades K to6, enrollment decreased by 96 students and preschool enrollment dropped by an additional 72 students. Slide, please. Further, we noticed we noted a reduction of students identified as low income that accounts for a decrease of 595 students or a 3.34% reduction. The district also noted a decrease of 240 students or 3% reduction in our multilingual learners from a reduction of newcomer students as well as existing students exiting L status through successful testing and meeting exit criteria. Because the enrollment data from October 1 dictates our formula, our funding, these shifts are a critical factor in the FY27 foundation budget calculation as both of these categories provide an incremental increase of funds. Slide, please. Looking at the summary of changes from our October one enrollments from 2025 to 2026,

037there was a total reduction of 101 students, an increase of 45 students at middle school level and an increase of 22 students at the high school level. The most significant change was within preschool through grade six cohort, which was a reduction of 168 students. The district's total count was 24,677 students. Slide, please. The chart provides total district level enrollment data since fiscal year 2019. As you can see, the highest year was a fiscal year of 2020 at 25,415 students. Then the dram dramatic drop through the pandemic years started in fiscal year 2021 through through 2023. Fiscal year 2023 was the lowest point of recent enrollment at 23,735. Our enrollment starts to slowly rebound beginning in fiscal year 2024. Slide please. This chart provides the district level enrollment data since fiscal year 2019 for elementary, middle,

038high school, and head start. Our enrollment has included a modest increase in the past four years. However, preschool and elementary grades appear to be continually declining. This is also to be noted as a statewide concern. The state total counts have also incurred a student redu reduction across the majority of grade levels. Slide please. Inflation is the second major factor as it relates to the state's foundation budget calculation. This factor is used to adjust the per pupil rates annually to reflect increased spending for state and local governments. There are two inflation factors used in the state's calculation. one specific to employee benefits based on an enrollment weighted three-year average premium increase for all state group insurance commission plans at 8.29% and the inflation factor applied to all other categories at 2.76%. Slide please. The state's foundation

039budget calculation is primarily dictated by three critical var variables. Student enrollment, inflation rates, and the ongoing phase in of the student opportunity act. We will examine the S SOA impact in the following slides, but the current figures reflect a combination of factors. Specifically, a modest decrease of 101 students accompanied by the shifts of lowincome and multilingual learner populations which has resulted in a $4 million reduction in the base foundation. However, this is offset by the inflation adjustment of 19.4 million resulting in a net foundation budget increase of 15.4 4 million for the district's FY27 budget planning of these two categories. Slide, please. The Student Opportunity Act is the third major factor as it relates to the state's foundation budget calculation. It was more than a formula change. It was a six-year phase in of resources

040for our most critical needs. The landmark legislation introduced six fundamental changes to the state formula designed to close the funding gap in critical areas. First, it addressed essential costs, specifically adjusting employee benefits and health insurance rates to more closely align with industry growth rates. Second, it prioritized our students well-being by expanding funds for guidance and psychological services. Third, it provides a significant lift to special education, increasing support for both in district enrollment and outofd district tuition. Most notably, the act targets the highest need areas, providing the largest funding increase for our lowincome students and enhancing support for our multilingual learners to ensure they have the resources necessary for success. Slide, please. The FY27 budget represents the final year of our transition to the new target foundation rates. This phase in adds an additional $18.4 million

041to the district's budget, bringing the total impact of the S SOA to over $14 million received over the last six years. This multi-year investment has been consistent with district estimates of meeting the per pupil targets established when the act was first implemented. Slide, please. As we've established, the state's foundation budget is driven by three primary factors: enrollment, inflation, and the student opportunity act. These variables have a direct year-over-year impact of the district's general fund budget planning. The state formula is designed to be equitable. It intentionally allocates more resources for vocational programs, multilingual learners, and students who receive special education services to ensure all students receive specialized instruction required in those areas. The FY27 foundation budget calculation provides a 33.8 8 million total increase over FY26. While our enrollment decline and demographic shifts resulted in a

042$4 million reduction, these were offset by two major gains. The 2.76 inflation adjustment, which added $19.4 million, and the continued SOA phase in which contributed an additional $18.4 million. Again, the total increase of $33.8 million over FY26, specific to the state's foundation budget calculation. Slide, please. This slide provides a summary representation of the three core factors used to establish the state's foundation budget calculation and how enrollment inflation inflation changes in the S SOA phasin come together to build the state's foundation. Slide please. Transitioning from the state's foundation budget to the Wister public schools general fund budget requires a few additional calculations. First, our foundation budget is funded by two sources. 43 437.7 million in required states chapter 70 state aid and a city contribution of 161.6 million totaling $599.4 4 million for the FY27 calculation.

043Regarding the city's share, it is important to note that the 3.8 million in one-time funds provided for FY26 is not included in this year's base. While we are still in active discussions with the city regarding the final FY27 allocation, we anticipate a contribution increase of 7.8 8 million from the city combined with a $25.9 million increase of state aid. From this amount, the district must reduce the state's assessment for charter schools, school choice, and outofd district special education placements. This is funding that follows students to the charter school, school choice, and special education outside of the districts. And the combination of assets total $45.8 8 million. When we calculate these figures, the preliminary FY27 general fund budget is anticipated to be $553.5 million. This represents a 27.8 million or 5.3% increase over our current operating

044budget today. Slide, please. From this baseline increase in funds, the administration currently estimates salary costs for all employee groups are expected to increase by $21 million based on known and anticipated salary increases as well as entitlement grant planning for the next fiscal year. In discussions with the city, the district estimates the health insurance increase of $5.7 million for antim anticipated plan costs. We also anticipate a modest rate increase of $200,000 for contractual contracted transportation services of outofd district special education and McKini Vento students and an inflationary cost for all other non-salary accounts increase of $1 million. Total estimated costs increase are anticipated to be 27.9 million for level service of for our students and aligns closely with the estimated growth revenue growth. At the present time we do not anticipate a significant budget cap for

045next year. Slide please. Our planning remains focused on equitable resource allocation. We are maintaining our district's staffing parameters such as 21 to1 average class size and targeted studentto staff ratios. We also continue our work with the school boundary realignment to ensure programming aligns with each building's capacity. We anticipate realignment recommendations being provided in June and ongoing community discussions through the fall of 2026 for implementation at the start of the 2728 school year. Slide, please. The parameters noted provides the district with the information as we continue our shift toward an equitable equity-based budget process. We continue ongoing discussions with school instructional leaders and data analysis regarding allocation of staff time and funds to continue to eliminate opportunity gaps for our students. While the federal landscape remains in a state of transition, we are closely monitoring federal

046grants, including Head Start and USDA food programs to ensure stability in those services. These grants and programs fund over 500 district positions including teachers, PAR educators, Head Start employees, and school nutrition staff. We are currently anticipating our entitlement grants and nutrition programs to remain intact for the upcoming school year. Slide, please. As we move forward with budget planning, our key areas of impact remain the following. The impact of the student opportunity act and beyond this final year of implementation. District enrollment and the continued decline at the elementary level. Enrollment shifts and the impact of the incremental increase of funds. Enrollment shifts and the impact on staffing. Expansion or enhancement of programs or required support. Equity based planning and our strategic planning. Key areas that again include providing equitable resources, safe and welcoming learning spaces, ensuring

047highquality educators for our students, and positive relationships with caregivers through community engagement. Slide, please. Looking at the next several months, our process is collaborative. We have begun school-based resource allocation meetings. This will be followed up by department meetings in the next few weeks. We have several budget presentations planned with our v various advisory committees including students, parents, and community roundts. The recommended FY27 budget will be submitted to the school committee on Friday, May for Friday, May 8th, followed by public hearings on June 4th and June 18th. As part of the budget process, the administration welcomes the committee to identify any additional priorities during this planning phase. Slide, please. through the chair. Thank you for the opportunity to present present this evening. I'd like to thank an accomplished senior currently attending Burncoat High School for her

048artwork. It was showcased at the district's spring show and will be used for the cover of our FY27 budget book. Happy to take any questions. >> Any questions? Um, member M. >> Thank you. um for the presentation. CFO um a few questions I just to you know the S SOA loss next next year is going to hit us hard and um when we think about all these um commissions that the state is supposed to start that they're probably five years behind. Can you remind me through the chair when we started the work on S SOA for this six-year trunch I'm superintendent >> through the chair. So the foundation budget review commission actually issued its report in 2015. It was not enacted until 2019 and then not funded until FY22. So the scary part of that

049is there's all this discussion about updating these um maybe so that's probably a if I got that math right maybe a six or sevenyear um process seven or eight year or longer would we anticipate through the chair >> no exactly the from the establishment I was I thought you doing a six seven joke um the establishment of the last round. It does take time to actually for the committee to do the work. >> Yep. >> And then for the legislature actually to go through their process to uh change chapter 70 formula. And so yes, last time it was uh a when it's the foundation budget review commission started to when the legislature actually enacted it, it was about a six-year period. >> Right. So, this could be a I'm gonna be optimistic and say maybe

050it won't be so long since it wasn't that far away that we did this. Um whereas the last time it was a long long way away. Um maybe that will make a difference. Um but that's really huge consideration I think for us to think about going forward. and through the chair on the um just one of the parents or Dina was asking questions about the low income and multilingual um changes. Can you help us work through that? Miss Conso >> Miss Conso >> so through the chair just want to find the right page. So through the chair we had a lowinccome reduction of the 595 students. Um that is based on a four quarter weighted average through the state. So the anticipation is is that next year it would possibly be reduced as well just

051on the weight. >> So the chair if I if I can just add to that. So, we knew there was going to be a statewide low-inccome drop because co era benefits had expired last year. And so, at this look back period for funding, we knew there was going to be a reduction for low-inccome students across the state. We didn't know the extent because the state >> um pre-qualifies determines our low-inccome enrollment through um eligibility of uh state benefit programs. So this was fully expected across the entire state through the um run out of uh some co era benefits. >> Okay. So but it did can you say higher or lower based on what you were anticipating? >> Not really. >> We we don't we don't know uh the which criteria our students are qualifying for

052whether it's mass health or whatever it. So we didn't we don't know >> um the the reason for students uh becoming eligible not eligible. So we didn't have an estimate. >> Okay. >> Remember me? >> And through the chair the multilingual learners. >> So through the chair it's a combination of newcomers not coming but also the testing of our students and successful testing. I think there's a word for that that I'm unsure of. to the chair. Last year when students took the access access testing, >> we knew there was going to be a decline in multilingual learners because they exited uh their their status. So that's a good thing. >> Yeah. >> Um but there is a corresponding revenue decrease as a result of that. >> Right. Right. And so out of the um 3%

053decrease, do we have it allocated to how much was the testing the improved testing? I don't have it with me today through the chair, but I can get that for you in a report. >> Um, thank you. And I thought I had one other >> just for us to remember this. Is there any opportunity at the state level to the inflation rate was a big deal last year. We didn't get anywhere. We were looking each 1% is $5 million and we got nowhere with that last year basically, I think. And is that what you anticipate this year through the chair? >> Mr. >> Through the chair. So I don't know that there is any current look at the state level at the inflation factor. I would suspect it would be part of the next uh

054look at uh S SOA version two or whatever. So it would be part of that commission >> which could be again however many years. Okay. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Member Bernenda, >> just on the S SOA, um I thought when we were involved uh with the S SOA, the idea was when we got to the sixth year that that money that would be added to the budget from from then on. So, I realize that you don't have you might need more money than what was in the original formula for the S SOA, but um it won't be listed at S SOA, but will it not just be included in the budget um going forward? >> Yes. So, the $104 million that we received over the last six years is in our base. I

055think in the statute, uh it actually requires the state to look at the for formula again every 10 years, but that's another four years before the statutoily they'd even look at it. Thank you. >> Okay, that's our first round. I'm sure this Oh, sorry. Member Bean Carrier. >> Thank you. First of all, thank you very much for this report. Nice and thorough, detailed. Got a couple of questions um on the budget planning for key areas of impact. I know we're all pressing questions on the um S SOA, but of course losing it is going to, you know, to deal with and you have down here a strategic plan. Um with I I guess the question that's going through my head right now is are we looking at the possibility of any layoffs of staff members

056because of the loss of these funds? >> Mr. through the chair. So, right now, um, preliminary estimates, our revenue is about what we're expecting our cost increases to be as we currently exist. However, what we're using the resource allocation meetings for is to identify other needs the district may need for next year. So, there may be reallocations within um the budget. This budget does not predicate any layoffs needed to balance the budget, >> okay? Okay. >> But we've got to determine what reallocation we may need to pro to continue to support student needs for next year. >> Student needs along with facilities and so on is what I'm what I'm looking at is is we have a package that we'll be looking at. Um I think it's Monday evening as far as what we're going

057to be doing with our buildings and the structures which brings me to my next question on student enrollment. Um, we I guess I'm surprised at the numbers. It usually we're in the opposite direction. We usually middle school and high school those numbers go down, but this time it's in reverse. any idea of how that's working due to the fact that when I look at um the six schools that are under district C where we actually had to move students to another building because we had Rice Square school full and we went over to Westerice Middle up to the third floor. So I it's kind of the opposite of what happened on the east side of the city. the chair. So I think um what you are describing is exactly why we started our quadrant realignment

058and balancing project that will have recommendations to the school committee this spring because Rice Square, Belmont, and Chandler are still overcrowded despite overall a slight decrease in elementary students. What we're seeing is exactly what our enrollment projections have been saying over the last several years. We were anticipating seeing um secondary student increases, >> okay? while uh seeing a decrease at the elementary uh level uh slightly. It's it's actually mirroring exactly what we had projected. >> Okay. And you're comfortable with what we're moving forward with at this point >> for for our plans? >> Yeah. Through the chair? Sorry. uh uh we remain I think um on target uh based on our uh long-term and short-term projections and I don't see any significant changes um going forward other than uh potential impacts on lowincome uh students

059qualifying for a low income which is a significant amount of our foundation budget in the future. That's the only area of unknown going uh forward at this point. will that affect um when I saw that I was surprised at that. I didn't anticipate that and I I get the fact of the co issue and so on but um it's odd to me that it would take f almost five years for it to finally start to affect us and affect the numbers that we're looking at. >> So through the chair some of those benefits just expired last year and so remember they're only looking at enrollment on October 1. So it's a static point in time. So it was we were beyond that uh period last year when some of that benefit expired. We knew going

060into this year there would be an impact. We just didn't know the the extent >> the the level of it and the the extent of what we were looking at for dollars. >> And again that's that's a state through the chair. Sorry that is a statewide uh issue. That's not Wister only. If you look at across the state, the state is actually seeing greater declines of overall enrollment uh loss of multilingual learners and loss of low-income students. Our impacts are lower than what we're seeing across the entire state. >> And this is not anything that we've we uh it's it doesn't appear to be a form we're filling out in our schools to make that determination. Correct. >> All thank you through the chair. Uh so because we're a community eligibility program, all of our

061students have access to meals for free. So we don't use uh those forms any longer. And actually the entire state is essentially free anyways. Okay. >> There is a supplemental low-inccome form that we can um uh distribute um and identify potential uh students that would qualify that are not on a already state benefit program. We can talk about doing that for next year. It's uh very labor intensive and our experience in the past has been you don't pick up that many more students because they're already uh accessing uh meal programs for free. >> Okay. So, they already have access through the chair. Um and again, thank you very much for this information. I'm sure we'll be receiving additional information as we go over the next few months. Um the the the last piece on this

062is when we look at um what we are offering under our chapter 74. I noticed that there was not really any adjustments on what we were doing or how we were looking at is that because perhaps on the next report we would get that or we're just not having any effect on it right now. >> Mr. through the chair. So, the foundation budget actually does reflect an increase in enrollment uh chapter 74 programs. It just it for today's purposes, we're just looking more at the global numbers instead of the individual programs. As we go through planning for next year, we'll look at uh chapter 74 and CTE programs and see um what our offerings will be. As you know, that is one of our district focus areas this year is how do we increase CTE

063and chapter 74 programs, both short-term and long-term planning. >> Okay, sounds good. Thank you very much. Thank you. Okay. So, uh so the Senate budget will come out shortly then the House budget will come out after that and that's when the numbers will come out on education that we should try to also contact our state delegation about the SOA money that we talked about the uh inflation factor. I know there is some changes looking at chapter 70 already. So hopefully you'll do something before budget's finalized at the state level. uh by this one. Nice job on the budget presentation. One of the better jobs. So, I appreciate that. Thank you. Okay, going back. There are motions to approve in the file. All those in favor? Post? So, a ordered. Next up is approval of grants,

064other finance items. Let me see what we have here. Okay, we have a support the implementation of updated regulations regarding the timeout practices grant in the amount of $50,000. >> Roll call. >> Member Alvarez. >> Yes. >> Member Vancario. >> Yes. >> Member Vernanda, >> yes. >> Member Guardiola, >> yes. >> Vice Chair Member Johnson, >> yes. >> Member Millian, >> yes. Vice Chair McCulla, >> yes. >> Member Roy, >> yes. Mayor Penny, >> yes. We are in general business 4-117 to create a policy for time on screen for one to one devices in the classroom across the grade levels. Member mailman, >> thank you. Um, mayor, does it make sense to take both of these items together? I know they're different, but this topic is Is that okay? >> Yeah. >> Okay. Next item

065is provide update on technology committee including software acquisition policy and process structured around time on devices especially at the elementary level and when AI use is allowed and when it is not. Member mailman >> thank you. Um I just want to say as an individual on this committee I am super happy with the um level of interest and input from the parents and community around this topic. Um, it helps us as members, it helps us, I think, as a district, um, to do better and to be more responsive to what people's worries are these days. And certainly this topic is not just Worcester, not just here, it's statewide, it's it's nationwide. And um I spoke to one of the members of the board of Bessie through the chair and you know they said Bessie is

066not really going to have guidelines or policies that mean anything for another couple of years. So, I have always been a fan of not filing things because I think items like this that um are just active conversations for a long time um belong living somewhere. And through the chair, I think one of those things is through um Marie Moss's office and um Sarah Karatz, we've created this parent group that's working on these items and there's a lot of great topics and those topics are probably going to just get discussed over and over again. Um I talked to Mike Moore, our senator, one of our senators in Worcester. he's on the cyber committee or something for the state and he I asked him his thoughts about this because this is something that they're talking about statewide

067and he told me that when he went on a trip to Europe to review what's going on over there and his comment was that we are behind we the US is behind and one of the ways that we're behind is what in my opinion parents and community is asking about and that's how do we know how do we know how it's going? How do we know how we're um performing and we don't audit? And that was a very interesting thing to think about. I appreciate the amazing work of um you know being part I've also tried to learn more about the what are you going to call it the um oh god the g the group that you're involved with that keeps track of the um you know with the national group of help me

068with this. No >> student data privacy. >> Okay. You ask your questions >> the superintendent. Okay. >> Through the chair. >> Okay. Through the chair to Okay. The student data privacy and that's been around for a long time and I'm sure that people that work for that group or whatever are inundated with the same kinds of things and probably doing the best they can to keep up. But that I don't think is satisfying the the concerns of parents. Their kids are in kindergarten, first grade, second grade, 10th grade right now. Um so I think particularly I have a lot of concern with um I spoke to Northampton. They have the opt out policy for and I got to watch my language again here. Um, it's my track stuff. Opt out of sharing data with third

069parties and they managed to do that. We've had a lot of discussion from parents. We've had emails, all kinds of stuff through the chair to the superintendent. Do you have any thought that this might be something that we can take a look at and revisit? Um, what we want to do in the short term anyways. >> Mr. Mr. Allen. >> Yeah. uh to the chair and thank you for that. I I think we acknowledge and respect the concerns that have been um raised around student uh data privacy and you know maybe there's more that we can do. I uh you know the the ed parent technology uh coalition committee that has been established might be a a good vehicle for us um to use to improve um kind of the parental notice some safeguard um

070and accountability as it relates to student uh data privacy. Student data privacy is an important um tool but it's not the only tool uh for us uh to use. And uh I think if we focus on you know being have more communication, more transparency and accountability around student uh data privacy, I think that's important. I I think uh that group is important uh for us to look at um particularly uh as it relates to biometric data. if there will be uh we should consider um opportunities for parents to opt out of any biometric data um whether it's finger, face or voice um in the future. and we just want to have conversations of what that would look like on particular apps versus there may be appropriate educational uses uh for us that we want to

071as we think about vision of a learner in folding out digital portfolios and maybe there will be videos of student work and so forth maybe that's one avenue versus uh technology apps that we don't necessarily >> um uh control or maintain or whatever that maybe that's a different conversation I think we're open and willing to use this parent group um to have more conversations about um opt out of biometric data. >> Thank you for for um considering that. And I also would make a recommendation or mo I actually want a motion that 5103 goes back to TLS so that it also sits in committee um for discussion as the committee sits fit like many other subjects that we have here. Um I there's this report on the first item was really good. There was a

072lot I think many parents acknowledged that that there was a lot of good information there. Um well as we're talking the simplification of how we show families through the chair um how we present data to them. These is I'm sure every district is struggling with this. Um I and I also applauded when I listened to the meeting the other night that we're going to try to reduce the elementary number because I think reduction of numbers is going to help us simplify. But making it, this is really complex stuff and making it as simple as possible for our families to understand what their grades are at, what you know, when you look at the re one of the the report that was put out for us, there's all the different programs, all the different um um

073you know, it's English, it's math, it's this and that. And if you add up all those times, it's not 10 minutes a day. It's maybe 30 minutes or maybe even an hour. and that probably fluctuates. So I think what is required is or what is part of our curriculum requirements the edtech that's involved with the curriculum specifically if I were a parent I would want to know what is required and of those requirements what are their AI aspects of those programs and then I would also want to know like what is extra and I and I also truly have a lot of respect for what that the teachers are bringing. They want to move forward. Let's try this. Can we do these new things? And that oftentimes helps our kids. So, I get that what

074you're doing is a balance of protection but also innovation and I appreciate that and I think this district has led with some of this stuff. But I just the tone I think one of the parents tonight talked about the appearance of resistance and I hope that that's something that we can um kind of change the tone and tenor of because I think this is super important stuff. They're great questions that um families have asked. So, the motion I would make um is I'd make a motion that we um work on simplification of listing these these products and who they attach to and um what kind of um identifying things or if they're AI or not for each of these different subgroups and also or different age groups. And also I would like um motion 5103

075to go back to TLSS. And I think I'm confusing the heck out of my self and I have a bunch of other questions but I'll save those. Thank you. >> Okay. >> Thank you. Anybody else? Member Johnson. >> Thank you um to the chair. Um, so I too um appreciate um the questions that have been brought to the table by um parents and community um members here in regards to um technology and screen time and all that other stuff. You know, I've actually spent quite a bit of time and over this um probably over the last month and a half or so um you know, as we all have received um multiple emails, um phone calls, different things um like that um with some very good questions and I had already had an item on

076which I I guess I really can't talk about because it's it hasn't it it would come up for for for in in the next meeting I guess um the next meeting we have in regards to some some some usage stuff which kind of ties into the the the item that member Milman had regarding uh time time on screen Um it is a very important topic to talk about and have and you know I really spent a lot of time over the past month and a half like I said in investing in this and trying to figure out and at first I was a little confused because I felt that there were numerous different topics that were being talked about opting out of uh I guess technology in general, not allowing your kid to have technology

077at all. No, no, no technology or opting out of certain applications. Um we there was also you know we also had third-party um vendor stuff, there was AI, there was screen time, there was usage and when I kind of listened to the meeting the other night I I think a lot of it was getting entwined together and it was hard to decipher what we're actually talking about and what question we're actually answering in regards to these items and kind of what's going So I think that was a problem and I was confused about that. So I guess I broke it down for for myself and you know I I I reached out to numerous school districts and talked to numerous people that I know in these districts. I'm talking about parents. I'm talking about educators.

078Some have been principles. Some have been assistant principles. I had a conversation in regard with Milbury Wakus Shbury Grafton. I also reached out to some people I knew in the in the in the dascese in the in the private Catholic thing on kind of what they do with technology and screen time and how often they're on it, what apps they use. Um because I wanted to be informed. I wanted to make sure that what's going on in our district, how do we look and compare to other districts in regards to this and maybe if there's something we could do differently. Um, you know, and it varies throughout the district, but what I could tell you is is that, you know, every school district's using technology. What grades they use it in and whatever varies here

079or there. Some don't do K and one, some do it varies. Um, but what was consistent with Oh, and on top of that, um, as you know, I I need to do, I I then talk to my constituents who have kids in the school along with the schools that I kind of work with and oversee. And I'm not done visiting those schools and having those conversations because what I wanted to know was from the educators in in in the classroom in K through six or whatever. What is the screen time usage? Is it a problem? I also wanted to know the applications and the the the things that we're using to um boost and to help and improve um academic performance in in the classroom. Is it actually working? Is there a benefit? Because Mr.

080Chairman, uh I'm not an educator. So, the one person I know I can rely on to answer that question for me is the educator in the classroom who we're teaching our kids. And that's kind of who I want to hear from. And I guess I again like I said I think I have to bring this up at the next meeting because I think one of the things I think would be beneficial is is to kind of get some answers from teachers who are teaching our students in the classroom or whatever and maybe some of our focused instructional coaches who are in the school doing that work to come back with kind of what a day looks like. We could look at it on a piece of paper, but just to kind of get that feel

081and hear from people in the field who are in the school who actually doing the work. I also have kids in the school. So, I've also talked to them and it's a little bit different because my son's in middle school, my daughter's in high school and talked about technology and how often are you on it and what do you do or whatever. I see it at home a bit but um not too much. And um talking to my son in middle school, he's in school 6.5 hours out of the day. And I said, "How often are you on on your Chromebook? How much are you um is the teacher teaching and you're learning? You're writing notes and you're doing stuff and how much time you spend on your Chromebook." He said maybe hour and a

082half, two hours out of the day, but that varies. Some days and some weeks it's not even that much. He told me the other day he hasn't seen a Chromebook in his English class in middle school in three weeks. He's probably gone on his Chromebook in um math or whatever two or three times in the past two or three weeks. So, it var it fluctuates. And what I was hearing from people and from parents and and emails or whatever, I was starting to get this sense that our kids are just sitting on a Chromebook for three and four hours out of the day. But when I was going to visit schools and having conversations with people, that's wasn't what I was getting. What I was hearing was, and I heard this from almost every district

083I talked about, 15, 20 minutes, we do this. It's a good thing to gauge where kids are at. We do our small group instructions or whatever while other students are learning hands-on or whatever. There's there's a variance of everything that's going on in in in in the classroom. And I think the the what I guess what the plan was all along, not just for our district, but throughout is that there's a going to be a combination now of technology and education going on in the classroom. And how do you blend that together? And I could tell you a a principal from Milbury in elementary school, been an elementary school principal for a long time, told me one thing. technology in schools when you apply it the right way could be very valuable if it's used

084the right way if it's abused it could be detrimental and I think those are some of the answers that I think people are trying to ask and find out which I am as well um there's been a lot of conversation regarding one specific app Stapath Um, I don't know if we're ever going to know what the implications of St Math is on how our kids perform in school. What I could tell you is I only came in contact with STM math for two years. My daughter never saw STM math on the computer because when we went to CO and came out, she went to middle school. Middle school there's no apps. There's no applications. There's no getting on whatever. It's all hands-on paper, whatever, Google Classroom. you do your assignments all set. I had my

085son is the only one that had it and I could tell you this. I thought it was a very valuable tool um for my son. Now I don't know if he's I but I think my son is wired this way. I could tell you academically math is probably not probably is his strongest suit. He's very very good at math. My thought I don't know what it is. Was it the benefits of SD math? Was it the benefit that he had good math teachers? Is it that he's wired that way? I don't think we're ever going to know sometimes who's good at what why do kids read read books all the time and and and just have that ability to love to read and comprehend things or whatever and other kids struggle with that. I I

086don't think we have the answer. And sometimes I don't think we're going to be able to figure that out. And again, I I know I'm going on and on, but I I I have I I put a lot of time and effort into really trying to wrap my head around this and talk to people and to get an answer. And I just want to make sure as um Mrs. M. Shavoya um said, "I want to make sure that each and every topic that we need to talk about with opt out and AI and and third party whatever that it gets its full do that we focus on those areas and just focus on that get the questions that need to be answered or whatever." Um, and I also want to say I I just want

087to be sure um because as we're talking about this and we keep talking about screen time and how much and AI and and things like that um we do have educators and uh there's always going to be educators that are going to teach our kids. And some might believe that with AI and all this other stuff that sooner or later our kids are going to be taught by a computer and not by a live live person. I don't see that. And I just want to make sure that, you know, in these conversations that we're not, I guess, insulting or whatever. basically saying that our educators are now using technology too more and just throwing our kids in front of a screen and they're not doing their job and they're not teaching cuz I've been in

088schools. I've seen it. They are teaching. They care for those kids. You can't replace an educator. You can't replace someone and when you come into the room they smile in your face and give you a big hug. That's not things that you could replace. They're always going to be there. They're the experts in this area. that's why they went to school to get whatever. And again, I as I as I said it, I and I I think we should hear from our focused instructional coaches in some of the elementary schools. Maybe hear from some of our elementary school teachers, K through six, on what some of the benefits are of some of these apps. Is it do do they believe that it's potentially helping and and having an impact on the learning of our kids?

089Because honestly for me that's who could answer the question. They're teaching my kid. They know. If they tell me no, then we got to have another discussion. But, uh, what I've heard so far is from people I talked to, educators and and elementary school students that that I've been in, and I'm not done yet. And my plan is to get out there over the next few weeks. So, when I come back on February 26, I have some more answers and be able to talk about that and maybe some of them could join here and we could have some of those discussions. But what I'm hearing is is that, you know, they're teaching, they're doing the hands-on stuff and and they they're supplementing some of those apps and things to help boost some of that academics

090and that they're that they're not misusing it or whatever. Um, and so I just want to make sure that we're not leaning too far to say that uh they're not doing what they need to do um in the classroom. Um, and again, I I do I really apprec appreciate having this conversation. Um, this is very important to me. Um, because I I want to make sure and I think that's why I asked the question last April and for one of my items to get it on. I did want to make sure that we weren't going too far with this. That's why I asked the question and uh others started asking and things came up and all this other stuff and you know the last thing I would say in regards to the AI stuff um

091a lot of school districts uh I know no Shober actually recently I don't know if you guys read Cambridge um just Cambridge school district just came up with something regarding AI and kind of um having this group or these um committees coming together to kind take a look at that. And when I was talking to the the gentleman from Shbury, he was like, "We can't run from it. We can't hide from it. We can't act like it doesn't exist. It's here. We have to embrace it. And how do we do that?" You know, we talked about the third party thing. And he also said the same thing that um Mr. Allan was talking about that they are now looking at yes you have the data um privacy stuff or whatever but they are actually Shbury

092is currently looking at what added layer of protection do we need to put in in regards to is there another form of something that we need to put out when we're dealing with something that they're looking at biometrics and and and that kind of stuff they are having those conversations actually regional I talked to someone today they're also having those conversations. So those conversations are happening throughout the state and throughout the city. So this isn't unique to us and I'm glad we're having these conversations. But I think it's time to have those conversations. Let's get the answers. I think let's be respectful and how we're we're going about this. And I think as a district, as a school committee or whatever along with the community and administration here that is doing a job and um

093Superintendent Allen, I think we could come up with something that works for the city. I think we always have done it with numerous things here and I think we could continue to do that. >> Thank you. >> Um member McCulla. >> I think member Johnson covered anything I possibly could have discussed. I would just uh through the chair reiterate that you know specifically on the screen time item. You know, I have the had the opportunity to be out in many of our school buildings and speak to a lot of our parents and a lot of our educators and I consistent consistently see, you know, very little consist uh ongoing technology throughout the day in those classrooms. It is certainly used, we've seen different ways it was used. Um, you know, and the feedback from the

094educators is probably a little bit more um qualitative than quantitative because they feel that things like STMath do benefit their students. they see a lot more engagement going on in their classrooms that are beyond technology. Um I was at Worcester Arts Magnet last week and you know very little Chromebook usage was occurring throughout the entire building. It was at an older grade and it was actually a collaborative effort where they were working on a history textbook that was on their Chromebook for a writing assignment that they were going to be doing together. So, I, you know, certainly am happy that people are asking these questions and want to have more information, but again, I would echo member Johnson's sentiment that what I'm hearing throughout the district from our educators and parents, it doesn't mean it's

095every school, but that, you know, it is very varied. It seems to be appropriate to the age level and that it is um assisting in their education and benefiting their education. So, I had a few other visits scheduled last week, but uh the snow and cold have impeded on those. So, I plan on getting to more of those schools over the next few weeks. So, thank you to the administration and thank you to everyone who has been asking questions around these topics. >> Okay. So, I just want to thank everybody and thank the the committee, the parents, the people here tonight. We'll get this through this together. I have concerns. We all have concerns. We don't know what a is going to be six months from now and a year from now. So, we're going

096to have these commu community discussions, get input, and have discussions and listen to each other and try to make the right decisions as we go forth as a community, which we do pretty good here, I think, sometimes. We can do that. So on the first item, the motion is going to approve the file and the second item is going to send to toss. All those in favor opposed. >> No. >> I thought someone said the toss. No. >> Okay. So we take the first item is to approve in the file. All those in favor pass. So opposed. The second item is we have a motion to approve and send the TLSS >> point member >> I guess I guess clarification I don't know point of order or what so I'm I'm confused so in committee

097this no th this was where was this oh this went to administration they came back with the so this was never in committee >> as far as I know Right. >> This was never in committee, right? >> No. >> So, this is a report that was asked for and there's >> So, the recommendation isn't to approve and file this, >> right? That's my motion. >> Oh, I'm confused. But sure. So there's a report that was asked for by by member mailman and the administration wrote the report and put it on this calendar and uh so it's never been in the committee and then now the motion is to um was the motion original motion was to approve the file but the next motion right now is to send it to >> committee. I I don't

098can Can you do that? >> Yeah. Can you send the same item? I I don't know. I I I don't know if we're I don't know. I don't know if we're we're out of out of I don't know what the word is. >> I don't know. Sure. Sure. I mean, we'll figure it out, I guess. I >> What are we >> I have a motion to send it to TLSS. >> Yeah, that's what I was saying. Yeah. >> Yep. >> Yeah. Your motion's there. >> Okay. So, anybody oppose that or roll call? Okay, roll call. >> No, we do. We sent the other one to uh we proven to file 4-117 was approved to file. 5-103. We're going to have a roll call to send it to TLSS. So, yes, vote would send it and

099no vote will not. >> Member Alvarez, >> yes. Member Biancia, >> no. >> Member Vanza, >> no. Member Guardiola, >> no. >> Member Johnson, >> no. >> Member mailman, >> yes. >> Vice Chair McCulla, >> no. >> Member Roy, >> no. >> Mayor Penny, >> no. Okay, we are on this is important subject. The next one, support legislation filed by Robin Kennedy. Senator Robin Kennedy to create a commission to study MSBA. I'm sorry, let's go back the other ones. Motions to approve of the file on the uh 5-103. Those in favor post, so ordered. So next item, Mr. MC support uh legislation filed by Senator Robin Kenny to create a commission to study MSBA to get funding process and award process. Support for such commission is especially important as we work on plans for a

100new Bronco High and explore possibility of indoor track facility. Member mail. >> Thank you very much. Um, you know, this is the last big high school that will get built and um we lost our I don't I don't know that there's another big one, mayor, but um we lost um the track at South years ago, right about probably the time when MSBA said they weren't going to fund tracks anymore or you can have a track, but we're not going to give you any money for it. which to me, Senator Kennedy's um bill is about funding sources. So, I hope maybe we can all agree with that. We're not going to send it to a committee. We'd just be kind of approving these or agreeing to try to help um support these items. Um her bill

101is about funding sources and award process. There's another bill um S43 which is an act establishing a special commission to review adequacy and equity. So that's kind of what I hear. I heard from coaches, thank you to Burncoat's um organizers that reached out to a bunch of different um coaches and I heard from some individually and to have a track in Worcester benefits not even just Worcester, it benefits kind of the region. Um, what I what concerns me about time with all of this is that we're going to be hiring arch architects shortly. They're going to have their charge to go, you know, design the buildings that we're going to have. We're going to assume we won't get paid. I I mean, we won't be able to build it or if we're going to build

102it, would it be separate or would it be part of a bigger gymnasium? I mean, all those considerations are kind of before us in the coming year or so that we want to think about. So, I just think this is um I was happy to see that councelor King and I think Mayor Petty, you added some information on the um MSBA about making sure MSBA has enough engineers, which is something I hadn't thought of, but I think council is on board that we need help from the state to figure out to better improve our opportunities with the MSBA and to re-evaluate the entire funding um formulas. And I think this track stands for something on the equity side and again our last chance. And I think Burnco waited for last and I think we should

103be doing everything we can to um get this done somehow or other. Thank you. I don't know what's going on here tonight. >> Mayor Patty. >> Uh thank you uh madam chair and uh appreciate the order here tonight and the uh this has been a big issue. Know this city has invested 1.3 million billion count Berno Bronco mill 1.3 billion dollars into the list of public schools. uh 100 million to the accelerary repair program uh to south Nelson Place um authority and now burn cop middle if you really think of to the turn of the century uh we've invested in every high school almost every high school and start I think was the all school was 1998 I believe around there sometime so almost every school uh except one I guess you could say has

104been uh the city has invested heavily into those schools and which is important. I think it's education is important. Sometimes it's not the building. It's the educators who do a great job. But having the uh facility that's updated is so important. And there's so much I know with my priority anyways is working with the MSBA and develop a relationship with them. They've they've invested heavily in the city of Worester by working with us. You know, we went back. I remember if you really think about it, just a few years ago, they reimbursed us $275 per square foot, something like that. Is it enough? Now it's the $435 something like that. 450. That's because of advocation. We advocate for this with the delegation we had at that time. Nate contacted working with the mayor's. I was

105on the mayor's task a mayor's committee that just two years ago trying to get more funding which which worked out pretty well in the sense that what we people forget we're an 8020 district that means we're supposed to get reimbured 80% imagine getting reimbured 80% of 1.3 billion man you can spend a lot of money on other things right so we're down to 5050 you know because you don't reimburse everything that we need as a for a high school or a school because we do a lot of things for the community in these schools and uh so some of the things we have to be looking at is increasing the square foot cost and uh so I hope Senator Kenny looks at that uh because I think what is the estimates got to be over

106$600 a square foot now I would think 600 imagine have 630 just a few years ago was was and the supply chain issues and uh so it's important that we look at the square foot looked at the square footage and look at the 8020 metric and hope looks at That's an equity issue really. That's 8020. That's what we're supposed to be getting in. And uh but I know what everybody's dropped. Every schools and across this Commonwealth uh are very challenged. And uh in Berno, Berno, Berno Middle, you know, when I first became mayor was the three high schools. These are the last three high schools. And Burke Mill is going to be part of that. So you're looking at about a $600 million project, if not more. and without the uh track know the track

107things know I had a I put a small task force together trying to get uh private track here in the city of Worcester we've had meetings on this in the business community and uh other people and also track at Burn's been brought up too uh and this is good that's on here tonight um because I've had discussion maybe with Mr. down, but definitely as the city manager and how we go about funding Bronco Middle, how you work at a trap and this in the properties up there and how because that in my mind, I know we have funding issues coming up. In my mind, that should be the best high school this has done. And uh that neighborhood deserves it and we got Dory. Dory is beautiful. If I want to make it even better,

108it has so much space. You can make a nice complex up there. That's my my dream. Uh you know, Dy only had so much space south. We uh took right I remember Moren Bernendo was the superintendent. We tried to get the track at South. We tried to put a track at Dory. I was going to put it up in the go around above the school and uh we're going to pay for it. And uh at that time the legislation didn't have didn't allow for tracks to do it. But now I think they've updated their policy now where you can do it but you have to pay for it. So this is why we got to think out of the box on this on this and make this happen. And uh because I want to make

109this happen. I've been trying to make this happen since I've been on the like the council almost just a track in whistle would be so great. As the young gentleman was saying, I think the student at uh Bronco High School, one of the track coaches, they have to when you go to Reggie Lewis, what a great facility that is. And I think there's one out is Springfield. Uh somewhere out in the western part of the state there's another one. And uh but there's nothing central Massachusetts. We almost put one over in Kelly Square one time. we're talking about it. Uh but this could be a great public p private partnership even just thinking out loud uh to make this happen for the community, make this a community project. Uh because it's really important for this

110this school district, this school district and the city really, not just a school issue. This is this is a city issue uh that uh we look at this track, we try to make it happen. the cost. It's the cost issue that has to be addressed because right now if you talk to Tim McGirthy and he's brought up this in the budget is we're maxed we're maxed when it comes to doing major project another high school after we do these. So, and and the performer of a track is anywhere from like up to $60 million, you know. So, it's not cheap. So, do it right because you want to do it right. What I don't want to do is skimp. I'll never forget North High School. I didn't know I was I was younger back then.

111I wasn't the mayor. But when that school opened, we had cut that school. It was the biggest mistake we ever made. You know, I think anyways, that school was was it was designed and we went through a budget crisis and that school was cut. It was never done right. We still talk about putting the field up there and uh make it right. We should be doing that someday in the future. And I just don't want to see that happen at Bronco like like what we did at Dory High School. I say we. So, this item should go to the uh the the building committee so we can put that into the uh as we design the school, we can look at these options with working with the MSBA and people who design the schools and

112get their opinion because they're experts at this and uh they should be able to help us out. Maybe be more cost effective depending how we do it. So, but I do appreciate the order and I will sign on to it and vote for that. Thank you, >> Member Bernetta. I I just wanted to just add on um to what the mayor said in that um we we have been we were in a rigorous conversation with the MSBA uh board uh for uh both South High for their pool and for the track because we were replacing a school that had those two things and uh because something that had happened with you know another school district that went way over budget it. Um, MSBA said no pools and no field house. So, we had to take

113that and then we got to Darity. We said, "Oh, good. We'll get it for Darity." And um, we were right at the board in the meeting there and saying that we're we we really want that. And the city had said they'll pay for that difference between u what is a fieldhouse and what is a gym. Uh, and we were still denied. and uh there was no convincing them. The mayor tried uh and Augustus tried um and we couldn't do it. And the the some of the facts that we used was that um Title Nine uh is very exact in that they like to see the same number of sports and opportunities provide for males as they are for females. And uh the number one sport that got our numbers up for females um was indoor

114track. And so that still that's probably still true today is indoor track. And now we're spending money um busing our students to Northbridge. Uh at the time the MSBA said no to us. uh they said we have many colleges in Worcester and why doesn't Worcester public schools reach out to the colleges which indeed we did do but they use their facilities all the time and it was either early morning or late at night and that just wasn't possible for for our students. So, um I do want to say that the MSBA has been great to Worcester. They've been great uh to work with. Um they're just very strict on what they expect and how they're going to use their money. Um because they explained to us that there are so many schools in school districts

115that want new schools that um to do extra things that are not included in what they want to cover um is just not fair uh for all the other schools that need it. So, you know, it would be great uh for us to have um certainly the fieldhouse there. Um I'm just hoping that our request doesn't um change the relationship that we have at MSBA and they still look upon Worcester as um a collaborative working district uh for for future funding. No, it's is part of the uh their program now. You can you can put a gym. So, I mean a track in the schools. So, um Magguardio. >> Uh thank you, Mr. Mayor. And I want to begin by stating that I appreciate the legislation filed by uh Senator Kennedy. You know, as a

116school committee, it's absolutely appropriate for us to to support a thorough uh thoughtful review of how MSBA operates. The decisions being made by MSBA directly affect our ability to to deliver safe, modern, equitable school facilities for our students. uh transparency and accountability in this process matter and studying whether the system is working as intended is not a criticism on an organization like MSBA. It's good governance. Uh that said, while I support the intent of the legislation, I want to be very clear about my concerns, particularly as they relate to the negotiations and funding certainty as mentioned, you know, with by the mayor and uh member Benenda. So we have been very fortunate to work with MSBA on various different projects and we have reaped the benefits of that on number of occasions including the high

117schools that have just been brought up. You know has just only begun the MSBA feasibility study phase for the new Burn code high school. uh as we explore possibilities for chapter 74 programs, arts and culture, and maybe an indoor track facility. This is a critical moment where districts rely heavily on consistency, predictability, and clear expectations. Any uncertainty around funding formulas, uh award criteria or approval timelines, especially while projects are actively in process, can materially affect negotiations, planning decisions, and ultimately cost taxpayers. From a school committee p perspective, this is not an abstract policy question. Changes or even perceived changes to MSBA processes can weaken our negotiation positions, complicate discussions with designers and project teams, and introduce risk into long-term financing uh planning. The risk is often borne by local communities like Wester and not the

118state. I want to be clear, my support for this resolution is rooted in the hope that a review or any review of MSBA strengthens, not disrupts the process for districts currently in the pipeline. Uh, as a school committee, our responsibility is to protect our students interest, our taxpayer dollars. And that means advocating for stability and certainty as much as reform. With those concerns, I clearly stated I do support this resolution, but I do some I do so with the expectation that this review will be conducted in a way that safeguards ongoing negotiations, preserving funding reliability, and allows Whistler to move forward without unnecessary disruption. Again, I want a fieldhouse. I think it'd be fantastic. I know we've talked about it in the past. Again, DHY South would be fantastic because we do have some great

119athletes who would really benefit from it. And I see the hardship it is for some kids to get there, get to North Bridge or get to Boston to be able to compete at a level that they could should be or could be competing at. But I want to be clear that I don't want to disrupt any good relationships we have with MSBA at this time. But I do support the resolution. Thank you. >> Thank you. Okay. So we will just be very clear here too. We have a great partnership with the MSBA. We couldn't without the MSBA. We would not be building south authority and burn middle um because we have a good relationship with with and they invest if state government invest where they think they're going to get good return in their dollar

120and that's why they come here in the city of Worester they know they're going to get a good school built and have the right programs in that building and uh because they trust the super superintendent we've had here and they trust uh the school committee and the city government here. So, I just want to thank the treasurer for believing in us and really um changing the city of Worcester in her investment. So much appreciated. Um me being carer, >> thank you. I had some real concerns when I looked at this. I feel the same way you do, ma'am. Um I think we have a very good relationship and I don't feel as though putting a commission is the answer to anything or everything. Um we seem to be throwing that word out. Start a new

121committee. take a look, investigate, bring out the paperwork, see what's going on. I have no problem with numbers, figures, looking at dollar amounts. Um, that's what I I did for a living for 24 years, which I still do now. So, finance is certainly a piece of um what I do as a school committee member, but it's not all of it. And I've seen success over the years of the schools that have been built and they are amazing. And what I've heard throughout this state is that we are very fortunate that you and other members of our um administration and and so on uh have a relationship where we can communicate and get things done. Uh do I want to see a field? Sure I do. I certainly feel that way. I mean, I I stand

122here week after week arguing about a baseball field at North High in in windows on a building. Um, so when we're looking at what we can do and how we get it done, there's always a process. Um, do I feel as though we need a commission to study at this particular time? I would have to say that uh we are looking at asking for help from the MSBA. Do I believe that they are open with their numbers, what they have, and how they make their determinations? It seems to me that they've discussed numerous times what they what their funding process is without being shy about it. So, I don't foresee that we need a commission um that would have to study the s the MSBA. Um we may need commissions for other areas um in

123what we have in other parts of government, but I don't feel as though this is a time for us to be investigating um where those dollars are coming from and how those dollars get here. Thank you. >> We have a motion. Member Milman, >> I just want to clarify that the commission is um at the state level and that there are multiple bills actually on Senate and House side asking for this commission. So, it's not just about what how Worcester um views MSBA and our relationship with MSBA. It's how districts across the state are dealing with buildings. Thank you. >> Thank you. So, motion's to approve. Those in favor opposed. So what? The motion is to a roll call. >> Roll call. >> Member Alvarez, can you please just repeat uh >> Okay, we're going

124to have a the motion on the table is to approve the motion filed by member mailman uh which is to uh support the legislation filed by Senator Robin Kennedy and also look at the possibility of an indoor track facility. So yes, vote would be yes and no. Vote would not be. Okay, roll call. >> Member Alvarez, >> yes. >> Member Biania, >> no. >> Member Bernenda, >> yes. >> Member Guardiola, >> yes. >> Member Johnson, >> yes. >> Member Mailman, >> yes. >> Vice Chair Mcculla, >> yes. >> Member Roy, >> no. >> Mayor Penny, >> yes. Okay, we are on 6-12 to request an updated enrollment report since 2023 for the handover program in the guard scholars program including sending schools and demographics. Um motion is referred to TLSS member mailman >> as it

125reads. All those in favor? Oppos? So a ordered. U member Johnson request administration look at the uh adjusting the 26 27 school year calendar to adjust for the Christmas break to allow for two weeks off. Is that the school committee or is that the school >> as it reads? >> Okay. Okay. Okay. So, as it reads, send the administration. All those in favor of postal ordered to authorize the administration to enter into a 5-year lease renewal with the Hilton Group Holding LLC for the parking lot associated with the Durk Administration building. Motion is to approve. Roll call. >> Member Alvarez. >> Yes. Member Biancia. >> Yes. >> Member Bernando, >> yes. >> Member Guardiola, >> yes. >> Member Johnson, >> yes. >> Member Mailman, >> yes. >> Vice Chair Mala, >> yes. Member Roy. >>

126Yes. >> Mayor Penny. >> Yes. Motion is to adjourn. All those in favor? Oppos? So order.